In 1863 a reading room was opened at Oak House. At that time reading was
still considered an accomplishment, eight years before the opening of our village school a visitor to Cawston
a few years ago told of how one of her ancestors used to go to the Friendship
Inn at Eastgate, where he lived, to read
the weekly paper to his friends. There were "private schools" here at that time
and in the Norfolk Directory for 1845 the names of two "schoolmasters" appear.
William Wells and Robert Yallop. Compulsory Education came with the passing
of the 1870 Education Act, and it was on March 6th 1871, that the Rector opened
the school at Cawston with 92 pupils on the books, in the care of Mrs. Bilby as
Head
Teacher, assisted by Mr. Bilby. On the 24th May 1990 the school had a holiday
for the birthday of Queen Victoria and the Relief of Mafeking. In the immediate
post-war years the school was "bursting at the seams", with more than 180
children in the four classrooms, two of which were divided by a curtain.
Playground space was very small, and PE lessons where taken on the strip of
road outside the school entrance. Games were played on the Homestead at the
back of Church Farm, where the annual sports were held, and the village
football team played its home matches.
1st April 1947 the school leaving age was raised to 15 in Britain.
School meals were introduced in 1949
and were served in two sittings in the present Scout Hut near the Rectory,
a
charge being 5 "old pence" per meal for the first child 4d for the second, and
3d for subsequent children in a family. On May 5th, 1953 the new school
building came into use, and on July 20th, the school was officially opened by
Dr. F. Lincoln Ralphs, Chief Education Officer for Norfolk.
The vastly improved
facilities, particularly the playing field, were welcomed. In 1957 the school
was
reorganised as a Junior and Infant School, the seniors (11+) being transferred
to the new school at Aylsham, pending the completion of the Reepham High
School, which our Seniors now attend.
A new seat of learning came to Cawston in 1964 see link
Cawston College
Headteachers of Cawston Voluntary Controlled School:
1891 Mrs. C. Bilby
1876 Henry Knapp
1883 Herbert Plow
1896 Archie E. Chaffey
1931 Leslie Chambers
1947 John A. E. Holmes
1952 John E. Kett
1978 Vernon Bale
1991 John Crowdy
Old
School 14th June 1914
Aerial View of New School 1953
May 1953, Moving Books etc to New School
Robin Cook-- Peter Fuller--Desmond Woodhouse--
David James--Ray Whall--Colin Hemsby--Dennis Overton.
Barrows borrowed from Norman Howard - Builder.
The old school at Cawston closed in 1953, when Mr. & Mrs Peter Marsham, both
former pupils, occupied the school
house they came into possession of the old school bell. in 1976 they returned
the bell for use at the present school which was opened in1953, the bell was
"rung in" by Miss Margaret Tuthill who taught from 1926 to 1968 at
both schools.
A large gathering of past and present pupils, school
managers, parents and friends assembled for the occasion.
May 1976 Past and present pupils, school managers, parents and friends gather to
watch
the old school bell officially received back and rung in by Miss Margaret
Tuthill a former
teacher at the school. "Pictures from the Journal, Friday May 7th 1976"
At the same occasion Miss Tuthill also declared open two seats for use on the
school
playing field. one is in memory of Mrs Douglas who worked as a member of the
school's
canteen staff from 1949 until shortly before her death in 1975, many members and
friends of the
school contributed its cost.
The second is the gift by the Cawston Brownies, who with the
Guides attended in
uniform.
Names of School Children Around 1936 supplied by Mr Michael
Yaxley
Michael also sent the above,
This comes from a book that a lady showed me at my mother funeral.
My mother at the age of 6 wrote this in school child's book when she was Cawston
school in 1936, his mother was then Beryl
Dunn.
Games we played as children and other things.
by Peggy & Pam Spooner (Dewing & Shreeve)
Great fun was had playing hopscotch, whip and top, skipping and rounders all
played
on the road.
P.E. was performed on the road when at school with hardly a stop for a car.
Mr. Payne's Homestead was used as a playing field for the school to play
football,
hockey, shinty, netball, rounders and cricket.
Another fun game after school was tracking we split up into groups of 4 or 5 and
armed
with a stone "white" if we could find one we would leave the following marks -> on the
road for others to follow of course we tried to mislead the ones behind by
putting marks
where we were not going. When we got back if we were lucky a batch of bread
would be
just out of the oven at the nearby Dents bakery we would purchase a loaf for
four and a
half pennies (old money) and pull it apart and give each one a chunk
"delicious".
At times we would purchase cream splits at two and a half pennies (old money) we
would
run across while someone kept watch just in case the teacher came out. On
Saturday
mornings we would buy delicious Ice Cream also we could watch the doughnuts
lowered into hot fat on a rack when taken out they were rolled in sugar and
lovely and
warm to eat, we never seemed to get fat on all these lovely things which came
from
Dents bakery.
Our school master was Mr. Chambers who's wife was also a teacher, she would set
us
some work and then she would read the newspaper and quite often would fall
asleep,
she also loved to put the clock forward 10 minutes to exit school early.
Outside the school was a very small green hut where a Mr. Fred Hobson repaired
shoes
and sometimes made them, we would crowd into the hut at playtime especially
if it was
cold and would torment him although we were really very fond of him, what would theymake of that today? 2006.
Related Link:- Peggy Dewing Photos Memory Lane Index
Return To:- Acknowledgements Return
to HistoryHOMESITE
MAPTOP
School Plays about 1948
Back Row Sylvia Raven--June Overton--Jean Allen--Joy Riseborough--Mary Mc Donald--
Helen Hodge--Anna Goddard--June Riseborough--Janet Andrews.
Front Row With stick not known--Barbara Dunn--David Neale--Gerald
Holmes--
With stick not known--In Front--Malcolm Carman.
With stick not known--John Oakes--John Chatten--Gordon Dugdale--Jill Stackwood--
Mary Mc Donald--Brian Turner--Gerald Carman--Front with stick Fay Chapman.
Peter Gaskin--Iris Bramble--Peggy Rainer--Michael Thompson--Not known--Jimmy
Wright.
Iris Bramble--Brenda Spooner--Peggy Spooner--Heather Mc Lean--Peter Gaskin--
Ann Vincent-- Not known.
Daphne Douglas--Doreen Bush--Daphne Barnes--Catherine Soanes
Barbara Dunn--Joyce Meak--Sylvia Raven--Helen Hodge--Ann Goddard--June Overton--
Rene Wilson--Wendy Wright--Lad not known--Pamela Spooner--Brenda Wells--
Barry Whall
Back Row:- Doris Rayner--Barbara Dunn--Joyce Claxton (Meak)
Middle Row:- Pam Spooner--Phyllis Overton--Ann Goddard--Jean
Allen
Front Row:- June Overton--Wendy Wright--Helen Hodge--Valerie
Woods--Rene Wilson
? Trevor Wright--Jean Douglas--? Russell Woods--4, Not known--Gerald Carman
